How to Attract Orioles? (11 Easy Strategies Listed)

Here you’ll find information on how to attract orioles to your yard.

The ornate black and yellow or orange plumage and ethereal voice of the oriole make this bird a favorite garden visitor. 

However, because of their behaviors, orioles are not always easy to identify.

As a result, we’d like to share some strategies for luring these stunning creatures into your backyard.

Easy Strategies To Attract Orioles

1. Attract Orioles As Soon As Possible By Any Means Necessary

Scott’s Oriole
Credit: Wikimedia

Orioles can be a beautiful addition to any yard, but luring them requires a bit of planning and the right timing.

The orioles will be hungry, tired, and possibly even thirsty after their long journey to your area. 

In other words, once they find a good place to eat, they are most likely to keep coming there regularly.

The best way to ensure the birds visit your property is to put out feeders a couple of weeks before they are expected to arrive.

If the birds don’t really see your feeders right away, you’ll have a hard time convincing them to go there.

They may make an appearance in the spring as soon as March or April if you live in a southern state. Northerly residents probably won’t see orioles until May.

Putting out feeders in the spring will ensure that orioles will visit your yard for many years to come.

2. Keep the Bird Feeders Pest-Free

Orioles may like sweet treats, but it just attracts more bugs to the feeders.

The nectar intended for the birds is a favorite target for bees, ants, and other pests. 

The same holds true for whatever fruit you provide as treats to the orioles.

Extreme amounts of sugar may be found in orange halves and undiluted jelly. As a result, these foodstuffs are the most prone to attract pests, necessitating frequent meal swaps. 

In this method, we can guarantee that the orioles’ feeders are always free of harmful contaminants and in good condition for the birds.

To prevent insects from becoming stuck in the feeder’s holes, a simple ant moat may be added.

If the feeder doesn’t come with a bee and ant barrier, you may keep insects out by placing a drop or two of vegetable oil near the openings.

3. Spruce Up Your Garden with Some Oranges

baltimore oriole

It’s probably no secret that hummingbirds could be lured to your yard by using flashy shades.

In the same way, if you want orioles to visit your yard, you should focus on the same factors. 

If you want to attract this particular bird species, orange should be your primary color of choice.

Hummingbirds are attracted to red flowers, but orioles prefer oranges.

There are a number of orange touches you may make to your property to entice orioles.

Find any trees, shrubs, or branches in your backyard that might use some color by painting them. Attract orioles using orange ribbons, strips of cloth, or surveyors’ tape.

These accessories are not limited to the ground; they may also be placed on railings and other vertical surfaces.

Orioles like dense treetops, so a sudden burst of orange light may be all that’s needed to attract these birds to your feeders.

4. The Best Way to Attract Orioles is to Plant Flowers and Vegetation They Like

Orioles may be attracted to your backyard and gardens by planting native flowers and plants since they will offer the nectar and pollen the birds need to survive. 

Nectar feeders are a great method to help birds out, but they still prefer the actual thing.

If you want orioles to visit your yard, plant plenty of nectar- or orange-colored flowers.

Daisies are a great introduction to attracting these beautiful birds. As for what other plants function well, it is totally dependent on where you live and what grows well there. 

For inspiration on what additional flowers and plants to incorporate, a short internet search can do the trick.

Native plants in your region not only provide nectar but also attract a wide variety of insects that birds love to eat.

Gazing balls, painted chairs, garden flags, and other things in orange may all be added to the yard to increase the likelihood of attracting orioles.

5. To Attract Orioles, Make Some Bird Nectar from Scratch

Altamira Oriole
Credits – Wikipedia

It’s true that hummingbirds have a faster metabolism, but orioles are big consumers of sugar water and nectar, too.

A commercial solution of nectar is the quickest and most convenient method to offer this, but there are several solutions that may be made and kept on hand for no cost.

If you currently feed hummingbirds, you’ll be happy to know that the sugar water they drink is made in the exact same way. 

One cup of sugar to four cups of hot water is a good recipe for any kind of bird. Be careful to whisk until the sugar is completely dissolved before allowing the liquid to cool to room temperature.

Just that is required. Honey or any other sweetener is unnecessary. Though hot water may be used, boiling water is the most effective method for dissolving sugar. 

Providing you keep the solution in the fridge, it will keep for a week. Always remember that fresh nectar is best and that using food coloring is not recommended.

6. Set Up Your Bird Feeders in Prime Spots to Attract Orioles

Keep this in mind while putting up feeders for orioles: they like to spend time in the canopy.

Think like a bird and place the feeders in open locations where the birds can see them even when they’re flying or perched high up.

Because orioles are often timid, they could avoid highly trafficked areas until they get acclimated to them.

For this reason, their feeding stations must be set up in places that are completely isolated from those used by humans and other animals. 

It will provide the birds with a sense of security and allow them to eat in peace.

Patience is the most crucial quality to maintain at any cost. It may take a few seasons before you start seeing Baltimore orioles in your backyard.

Maintaining the birds’ annual return might take much longer.

7. Oriole-specific Hanging Bird Feeders

oriole bird feeder

Attracting orioles isn’t quite as easy as hanging a hummingbird feeder, despite popular belief.

Orioles may visit hummingbird feeders, but their long tongues and inability to hover mean they are unable to drink from the tiny feeders.

The feeders may accidentally knock them over as a result.

Because of this, it’s crucial to have oriole feeders in your backyard.

Keep in mind the feeder you choose for these feathered friends has adequate drinking ports and sturdy perches for the larger birds you would like to attract to your yard.

Many feeders designed for orioles will be bright orange or yellow because of the bird’s preference for these hues.

These feeders often come with additional functions. Some of them, for instance, include compartments where you may hide food for the birds, such as juicy fruits and tasty treats.

8. Keep the Orioles Hydrated

All of the birds in your yard, no matter what species they are, need access to water to avoid dehydration and maintain their health. Even orioles are not exempt from this rule. 

However, shallow dishes attract birds because of the water movement.

If you want orioles to visit your yard and potentially nest there, placing a birdbath (or even several) around will help attract them.

Orioles, in particular, prefer the sound and movement of water, so a birdbath equipped with a dripper, mister, or bubbler will entice a larger number of these beautiful birds. 

To ensure the birds can easily drink and bathe, the basins should be no more than two or three inches deep.

Birdbaths, like feeders, must be maintained clean and free of debris to ensure the health of visiting orioles.

9. Using Grape Jelly to Attract Birds

grape jelly

There is a significant expenditure of energy associated with the oriole migration. You have a higher chance of luring orioles to your backyard if you provide them with energizing food, such as grape jelly. 

Orioles, like few other species of bird, like eating fruit, but unlike most other species, they choose mature dark-colored varieties.

Putting a little grape jelly in their food dish can entice them to visit your house.

If you’re going to serve grape jelly, a clean, narrow dish or cup is your best bet. Jelly may rapidly spoil or attract insects, like any other sugary meal. 

Birds may easily knock over even a plastic lid or a tiny container, so you’ll need to secure it to something. Blending the jelly with water one for one makes it last even longer. The end product ought to have the body of a thick juice.

10. When Summer Arrives, It’s Time to Switch Up the Menu

Orioles get a lot of their needed nutrients and energy during migration from fruit and jelly. Even so, protein-rich diets will be much appreciated by the birds throughout the warmer summer months. 

At this moment of the year, orioles prioritize eating insects for the additional protein they provide, allowing them to reproduce and successfully nurture their young.

Orioles require a lot of protein and fat, so when they start nesting, sprinkle some mealworms over the jelly jars to help them out.

Putting out a tray or cup of dried mealworms will attract birds long after the jelly has been consumed.

In addition to visiting bird seed feeders, orioles have been observed at suet feeders, especially those whose suet has been cut into small, manageable pieces.

If temperatures are consistently high where you live, however, suet might not be a good choice.

11. Think of Ways to Get Birds to Set Up Habitation in Your Yard

When nesting, orioles seek the largest, most secluded deciduous trees possible since this is where they can best showcase their artistic and functional creations. 

Orioles, on the other hand, isn’t the least bit interested in birdhouses.

However, if there are trees in your yards, such as oaks, poplars, cottonwoods, willows, or elms, they may choose to build their eggs there.

These ingenious birds construct their nests out of a variety of materials, including strips of bark, plant fibers, threads, grass, and vines.

The end product is a hanging nest with neatly woven components. 

Hair, pet fur, and little bits of yarn may all be useful in luring orioles to nest near your house, where they will use them to construct hanging nests.

Orioles regularly reuse materials from their previous year’s nests, despite the nests’ lofty locations.

Orioles can reuse their nests year after year, so there’s no need to worry about destroying them.

Conclusion

Numerous strategies exist for luring orioles, a vibrant and entertaining bird that would make a welcome addition to any backyard.

The more of these suggestions you implement, the more likely it will be that you will see these birds flying around your property.

So get moving, and yours may be the happy home that welcomes these birds back after their spring migration.

FAQ

To attract orioles, where should we hang feeders?

Think like a bird when deciding where to put the oriole feeder in your yard. Rather than concealing the feeder beneath a tree or awning, place it in a prominent location where passing birds may easily see it. Put up your feeder next to the bird bath. Adding a bubbler to your birdbath is a nice touch.

How can I get orioles to visit my backyard?

As they return to their breeding grounds in the spring, orioles like sugary snacks. They keep going because they eat high-energy meals like grape jelly and berries. Orioles are often fed grape jelly by enthusiastic backyard birders.

Is jelly or oranges the bird's treat of choice?

Even while orange marmalade and strawberry, red cherry, raspberry, and apple jams and jellies aren’t as tasty to birds as smooth grape jelly, they will still eat them. Orioles may be enticed to your yard by offering jelly in little dishes in an orange rind’s hollow, or spread on a cut orange.

Last Updated on March 22, 2023 by Lily Aldrin

About Lily Aldrin

I am Lily Aldrin. I attended Cornell University, where I obtained my degree to become an Ornithologist so I could pursue my love of these magnificent creatures in and out of their natural habitats.

1 thought on “How to Attract Orioles? (11 Easy Strategies Listed)”

  1. Thanks Lily. You made it very simple to understand these beautiful birds, for the eyes and ears. It also doesn’t cost much, just a little time.

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